Institute for Justice

February 2007, Volume 16, Number 1

February 2007, Volume 16, Number 1

By Tim Keller School choice supporters started the New Year with a first-round victory against a lawsuit that demonstrates how desperate school choice opponents are to halt meaningful education reform. IJ Arizona Chapter Executive Director Tim Keller (left) with clients Jessie Geroux and Phillip Collins meet in front of the Arizona Supreme Court where IJ…

By Chip Mellor Our lawsuits address the legal problems of our clients, but they do much more than that. The issue at the heart of each IJ case also affects countless other people who are similarly afflicted by government excess. It is therefore all the more important that we present to the court and to…

By Nick Dranias Red Wing, Minn., may be best known worldwide for its boots, but to locals, the City is becoming the poster child for governmental paternalism and economic protectionism. Officials in this town of 16,000 (located 50 miles southeast of St. Paul) seem to regard the area as their own personal fiefdom. The Institute…

If you ever visit an Institute for Justice office—whether here in Arizona or in Seattle, Minneapolis or Chicago, or our headquarters in Arlington, Va.—you will notice the architecture always complements our operating style: open, airy, inspiring and professional. That is the environment we create for ourselves every place an IJ employee hangs his or her…

By Elizabeth W. Milnikel IJ Clinic on Entrepreneurship client Shawn Smith specializes in transforming mundane or unappealing things into whimsical, plush toys. The characters are called Shawnimals, of course. Chicago entrepreneur Shawn Smith received free legal help at the IJ Clinic on Entrepreneur-ship at the University of Chicago Law School to develop and organize his…

Castle Coalition: Much Achieved, Much To Do By Steven Anderson The Institute for Justice continues its work to transform the U.S. Supreme Court’s infamous Kelo decision into a nationwide victory for home and small business owners so they are better protected against the abuse of eminent domain than ever before. Now, only a little more…

Report Strips Away “False Sense of Security” From Washington Eminent Domain Laws When the U.S. Supreme Court issued its Kelo eminent domain decision, many people pointed to the Washington Constitution’s protections for private property as a model for the rest of the country. The Washington Constitution clearly and explicitly prohibits the government from taking private…

Independent Authors Examine Eminent Domain Abuse By Christina Walsh The Institute for Justice recently launched a new series of independently authored studies—Perspectives on Eminent Domain Abuse—that explores the different aspects of eminent domain abuse from the vantage point of noted experts. The series’ inaugural study, Eminent Domain and African Americans: What is the Price of…

February 2007 Consider Gifts to IJ from IRAs By Melanie Tacoma Last summer Congress passed a law that is good news for you and for the charities that you support. Yes, you read that right. The Pension Protection Act of 2006 permits traditional and Roth individual retirement account (IRA) owners, age 70 1⁄2 and older,…